George Clooney Is Taking a Crack at Prestige TV With a New Show

Allie Gemmill is an avid writer, cinephile, Ravenclaw, and pizza enthusiast. She regularly writes on film and television with a special focus on women’s involvement & influence in Hollywood. Additionally, she has bylines at Bustle, Keyfr...

Looks like George Clooney isn't quitting acting after all

Well, folks, it looks like George Clooney might not be retiring from acting after all (that didn't take long).

The actor, director and producer will be wearing multiple hats on his next project, and we're looking forward to his return in a different (for Clooney) kind of project. As reported by E! News, Clooney will be taking on one of the lead roles in a rather prestigious adaptation of Joseph Heller's classic 20th-century novel, Catch-22, for Hulu. So, you can heave a sigh of relief because not only is Clooney not officially retiring from acting, but he's also tackling a prestige TV adaptation that will feel very timely.

Hulu has been rapidly expanding into the prestige TV arena, with The Handmaid's Tale being its most notable title to date. With awards aplenty, it's clear Hulu does well when it takes on an infamous novel and brings it to TV-watching audiences everywhere. As such, we can surely get excited about Catch-22, which will likely bring the same kind of thematic and plot-driven thrills and chills to our screens.

For those who might be a little rusty on the plot of Catch-22 from their high school days, the story focuses on "Yossarian, a U.S. Air Force bombardier trying to fulfill his service requirements so he can go home. The novel explored the paradox of requirements where airmen who felt mentally unfit to fly were not obligated to do so, but anyone who applied to stop flying was sane enough to fly." The story, set in Italy during World War II, promises more than a few shots of handsome Clooney in a sharp period-appropriate costume, as he's set to play Col. Cathcart.

And now for the sad news: There will, unequivocally, be only one season. Not only does the fact that Clooney will act and direct in the series preclude the possibility that he — a working father and husband with multiple other projects — will sign on for a second season, but this story is a close-ended one. At this moment, it sounds like even the clamor of potential audience approval wouldn't get a second season green-lit like the initially close-ended Big Little Lies did.

But even if we only get one season comprised of six episodes, as reports indicate, there's no doubt Clooney will deliver at every level. Start clearing room in your queue right now, guys. You'll need it for Catch-22.